AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Somehow, she let Damon talk her into leaving the bar an hour early and wait for Holden and Riley back at the Savage home. When something happened to any of the family, everyone held down the fort together and the parent’s home.
Backed up to the outskirts of town, the Savages had one of the best properties. Close to five acres of pure peace and quiet. Something you didn’t find in downtown Houston. She swore even the mosquitoes knew not to disturb the peace here.
Movement caught her eye along the back edge of the property. Luscious pines and oaks stretched into the sky, the branches mingling with the stars as an elk calf called for his mom amongst the large roots. Zahara smiled. They had a slice of heaven she would miss dearly.
A familiar ache settled around her heart.
She’d missthem. She knew that fact like she knew she had to leave this borrowed life. Her sister needed her. But the one fact she hated most of all was that they deserved better. A woman who would stick around and who could give them children.
Various shades of pinks and purples merged into dusk that matched the indigo color of her tank top. Despite the amount of light the day held, she could still see the twinkle of the brightest of stars fighting to shine through.
She blew out a deep breath through her nose. After the adrenaline and fear seeped from her body and left her mind clear enough to think she’d checked her messages. While hanging from that damn rope Riley had dialed her phone instead of focusing on getting his ass out of harm’s way. His father had been right. She was putting him in danger.
Zahara pressed the phone to her ear and listened to the message again. “Hey baby, I know you’re watching TV right ’bout now. Don’t worry. We’ll be home in time for dinner and dessert, baby. Holden sends his love too.”
Love? She hadn’t mistaken it. He had used the one word she never expected to hear.
Love.
That was the first time she’d heard it from either of them. Was it from the stress of the day? Or could it be true? Did he just want to soothe her at the time? A new fear inked a thought into her brain, but she dashed it away.
When they arrived and she saw with her own two eyes that both men were fine she would excuse herself, return to her apartment over Damon’s bar, pack and be gone by morning. The small details like convincing the oldest Savage brother to fly her to Fairbanks would be another problem for the morning. For now, she only needed to keep her pillowy soft stuffing inside together for a little while longer.
Zahara smoothed away nonexistent wrinkles in her tank top and jeans as she leaned against the thick pine post of the porch. Crickets sang their lullaby as dusk set in. Alaska’s midnight sun lit the sky…a beautiful thing to behold after such a long winter. She barely believed the first nights of endless day as the sun never dipped beyond the horizon for three solid months until she experienced it for herself.
Unable to sit idly by and wait, Zahara ran her fingers through her hair, tying the lengths into a long plait around her shoulder, and then undoing the work only to rework her raven locks again.
“Girl, you’re going to wear the boards down or work yourself bald if you don’t take a seat.”
Rowdy laughs and teasing fed through the crack of the door as Mr. Savage stepped out of the house and closed the door behind him. All the Savage brothers and their sister each tried to talk over the other as they worked to prepare dinner for a hungry crowd. Drake and Ethan’s wives were also here, doing their part as a tight unit of support.
Such a large crowd made her antsy. Besides, show the slightest bit of weakness and they would descend on her like a pack of mother bears. She smiled but shivered at the same time.
Give her the wide-open space where she could gather a thought or two before the men arrived. What she told her sister was true. After today, cutting ties would be harder, but it had to be done.
“Here. Take a good belly full of this.”
She took the offered glass of clear liquid from Holden’s dad.
“Thought you may need a little of the good stuff before the boys took it all.” Mr. Savage winked at her, and the gentle look in his eye pulled a smile from her. If Holden looked anything like his father when he hit sixty, some lucky woman would beveryhappy. A dull pain bloomed in the space around her heart and her throat clenched until it was hard to breathe.
“Once you take a drink of that you’ll feel better. The world won’t be so bleak.” He kept his words nonchalant and his tone even.
She appreciated his silent understanding.
“Something on your mind, baby girl?”
She swirled the silver-ish contents of the glass. “You know, Holden calls me that. I can see where he gets it from.”
Mr. Savage’s mouth turned up in a knowing smile. Silver graced the edges of his beard and worked around to dust through the length of his dark hair, making him look every bit the wise man she knew him to be. “There’s a lot more he gets from his old man, but he probably wouldn’t appreciate me saying so.” The chair groaned as he lowered his formidable weight into the cushion. With his broad shoulders and sturdy waist, his children shared the same features down to the mischievous twinkle in his eyes. Tonight though, his eyes didn’t twinkle and worry worked deep grooves along his forehead.
“Ahh, I see.” she nodded saying nothing more.
He rumbled a low laugh. “Perceptive girl,” he acknowledged her silent understanding of what he meant, raising his glass in a salute. She followed his lead and took a seat in one of the many wicker chairs decorating the front porch. “Momma might be a little shy in saying so, but we understand the pull of love versus the rules of society.”
“You mean, you and Mrs. Savage? You...” She knew what he meant but wanted to hear the words. Feel a little less like society’s outcast for her choice in partners. She ran a finger around the rim of her glass. How did she ask what she thought he was saying without being nosy, or worse, disrespectful?
He spoke softly, as though the memory was still fragile. His eyes focused on nothing in particular as wisps of the past flitted across his somber expression. Soft brown eyes settled on her. “The answer is yes, baby girl. Probably not many remember or choose to forget, but in the end, I guess it doesn’t matter because it wasn’t meant to be. Abigail was hit the hardest. She loved us both and you can bet we loved her. A woman’s heart is a little more tender than a man’s, but I felt the loss just the same.”
